Election 2012: Sunshine Swing State

Florida looms large for both candidates

As Election Day draws near, the necessity of every registered voter deciding whom they are going to cast their vote for becomes greater. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama have made frequent campaign stops in various parts of the country to ensure more votes this election season. There have been two official presidential debates (and one more about to take place) to help Americans make their choice. But undecided votes still loom as the unknown factor of this election.

Recently, each candidate stopped in Florida to plead his case for more votes. In fact, both President Obama and Governor Romney have visited Florida nearly a half dozen times each this month alone. The sudden ravaging for the votes in this major swing state has been long anticpated.

As the race winds down, it appears the election will come down to nine swing states: Colorado, Ohio, Virginia, South Carolina, Florida, Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. With twenty-nine electoral votes up for grabs, Florida is key to winning this year’s election. In fact, many believe that Governor Romney must win Florida to have a real chance at the White House. A candidate needs 270 electoral votes to claim the presidency. According to the New York Times interactive electoral map, these swing states have a total of 95 electoral votes.

A Scholastic News poll has President Obama leading comfortably in the Sunshine State, but recent Florida polls have shown that both candidates are in a dead heat at 47 percent of registered Florida voters. Although President Obama carried Florida in the last election, the economic situation in Florida is not as stable as that of the mid-western swing states, so President Obama is having a harder time winning Florida’s undecided voters.

The battle for Florida is extremely close, but whoever succeeds in Florida will definitely have a major advantage in this year’s presidential election.

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